post your favorite swim workouts - 1600 yd main set

I'm a KISS kinda guy.  16x100 with 10-15 seconds rest or 8x200 with 20 seconds rest. 

If you want to make it a bit more interesting, do a descending set.  So for the 16x100, you would descend (ie. go a bit faster) from 1-4, 5-8, 9-12 and 13-16 or some variation on that.  Descending 1-5, 6-10, 11-15 and then try to make #16 the fastest of the bunch.

Here are two of my go-to's. The first is one I made up one day when I really didn't feel like being in the pool - there's enough variety to pass the time:

300-400 W/U

4x100 as follows: 

100 kick, 100  pull, 100 drill, 100 swim (I mix up both the kicks (flutter, dolphin, backstroke) and the drills) and give maybe 10 sec. rest between 100's.

This next one is a 2000m workout I got off the internet in 1998 (it took 10 minutes to load). Great workout, short and sweet:

200, 150, 100, 50 FAST (I shoot for 300m race pace)

200, 150, 100 FAST (same race pace), 50 ez

200, 150 FAST, 100, 50

200 FAST, 150, 100, 50 

The idea is to keep your pace for the fast efforts the same throughout the workout. It gets harder as the workout progresses, not only because the fast efforts grow longer, but also because you have less time between each one. 

300 warm up

50 - 100 - 150 - 200 - 250 - 250 - 200 - 150 - 100 - 50   (10 seconds rest between each)

200 cool down

Yesterday was an 1800m main set.  I did...

WU: 200 swim, 200 kick 

6x50 drill

Main set:

2x through - 1st time pull, 2nd time swim

(2x200

2x150

2x100)

Cool down.

I just remembered that my last masters practice was an 1800 meter main set. 

12x150 with ~ :30 rest
1 ez, 3 fast
2 ez, 2 faster
3 ez, 1 fastest 

I was doing it with a guy who is a bit slower than me so I was getting more like 45 seconds rest but there was some serious lactic acid buildup by the end of it!

Use an even interval per 100m (let's say you it's a push for you to do 1:50/100m, so they'd be 2:00/100m)

8x50 @1:00

4x100 @2:00

2x200 @4:00

400 all-out but try to keep each 100 at same pace

Here's mine:

300 WU

4x50 at 500 pace (set interval for 10 secs rest, I'll refer to this as R=10 from now on)

200 easy R=45

2x100 at 500 pace+5 secs R=15

200 easy R=45

200 at 500 pace+10 secs R=20

200 easy R=45

100 CD

Enjoy!

Just for fun, try doing a broken mile as a opposed to a straight mile.  By broken I mean: 275, 250, 225, 200, ..... 75, 50, 25 with a 10 second rest between the intervals.  I tend to swim a little stronger if I know I get a few little breaks (10 seconds only gives you a couple gasps of air really).  It also breaks up the monotony of "swimming, swimming, just keep swimming..."  If you don't like to count yards, you can count the same broken mile by 11 lengths, 10 lengths, ...etc.

I only do this every couple months or so, but I like it in the rotation.

IMHO it is harder to get better swimming like that.

I think that would be much less effective than the shorter intervals with shorter rest. 

I threw up a little in my mouth when I read this....

but now I have to try it!

gsmacleod - 2012-03-07 11:51 PM

axteraa - 2012-03-07 11:48 AM I threw up a little in my mouth when I read this....

but now I have to try it!

It is a great workout in a terrible sort of way However, I often find myself (well, when I was actually swimming at all) using this if there wasn't a coach on deck to tell me what to do. Simple, easy, painful. Shane

There are two main sets I abhor above all others.

50x50 @:50

10x100 @1:10

They're probably good for me. I will never do them again. Ever. I have probably just sealed my fate there ...

Im not questioning but am trying to learn.

In the pool last year I did mostly pyramids ie,100, 200, 300, 400, 300, 200, 100. Once I could get out in the lake (a few minutes from my house) I had two out and back "courses" one about 1000m and one about 1500m. I was and am a slow swimmer but knocked down a 2km swim in my first ever tri without clinging to bouys, kayaks or even really stopping.

So the question is - Why is the wisdom to go longer in running and biking but it seems to be the opposite in swimming?

I like 3 free 1 breast, continuous swim, repeat as necessary.  Or free-back-free-breast continuous swim. Or free, continuous swim.  Do I swim like a triathlete or what?

TW

My old standby:

This is for LCM - if it's SCY then I reduce the rest intervals.

WU: 200s/200p/200k/200s

MS1: 100/200/300/400/500 at RPE 9/7/5/5/4 respectively 30" rest in between

MS2: 10x50 on 50"

CD: 200ez

TriAya - 2012-03-07 11:08 AM

gsmacleod - 2012-03-07 11:51 PM

axteraa - 2012-03-07 11:48 AM I threw up a little in my mouth when I read this....

but now I have to try it!

It is a great workout in a terrible sort of way However, I often find myself (well, when I was actually swimming at all) using this if there wasn't a coach on deck to tell me what to do. Simple, easy, painful. Shane

There are two main sets I abhor above all others.

50x50 @:50

10x100 @1:10

They're probably good for me. I will never do them again. Ever. I have probably just sealed my fate there ...

I hope that is a typo Needless to say I couldn't do more than one 100 on the 1:10.